Los Angeles - Peaches hit Cinefamily in L.A. last night to promote her movie "Peaches Does Herself," which is "an electro rock opera stage show that recounts a mythical history of Peaches and follows her journey from bedroom musician-wannabe to rock star." The film features a 65-year-old stripper, a body suit with breast and penis prosthesis, spandex orgies, gore and full-frontal transsexual porn star and performer Danni Daniels. "...The most beautiful human being possible," as Peaches said of the latter during our interview. It's easy to remember the visuals of the musical film, along with its choreography, and that's part of...
- 11/6/2013
- Hitfix
The 4th annual Brisbane Underground Film Festival will take place on three nights — and one afternoon screening — on Nov. 21-23 at the Brisbane Powerhouse arts center.
The fest opens on the 21st with two documentaries about two iconic performers. First up is Jeffrey Schwarz’s hit I Am Divine, about the legendary actress and drag queen; followed by the performance film Peaches Does Herself.
Screenings at the rest of the fest include Drew Tobia’s outrageous debut feature See You Next Tuesday, which has been tearing up the underground circuit; Zach Clark’s holiday dark comedy White Reindeer; transgressive filmmaker Jon Moritsugu’s return to the cinema, Pig Death Machine; the graffiti art documentary Vigilante Vigilante by Max Good and more. Each feature film is preceded by a short film, as well.
The full film lineup for the 2013 Brisbane Underground Film Festival is below. But, please visit the fest’s...
The fest opens on the 21st with two documentaries about two iconic performers. First up is Jeffrey Schwarz’s hit I Am Divine, about the legendary actress and drag queen; followed by the performance film Peaches Does Herself.
Screenings at the rest of the fest include Drew Tobia’s outrageous debut feature See You Next Tuesday, which has been tearing up the underground circuit; Zach Clark’s holiday dark comedy White Reindeer; transgressive filmmaker Jon Moritsugu’s return to the cinema, Pig Death Machine; the graffiti art documentary Vigilante Vigilante by Max Good and more. Each feature film is preceded by a short film, as well.
The full film lineup for the 2013 Brisbane Underground Film Festival is below. But, please visit the fest’s...
- 11/4/2013
- by Mike Everleth
- Underground Film Journal
For over a decade, electroclash punk artist Peaches has danced a wild line between pop artist and provocateur. While commercial mainstream pop singers come and go, the 46-year-old Peaches remains as feisty and in tune with her boundary-pushing sensibilities as ever. And now she can add filmmaker to her colorful resumé: With the concert film "Peaches Does Herself," which opened in limited release this weekend, Peaches directs an expressionistic representation of her stage show, featuring a lively rendition of 22 tracks ("Fuck the Pain Away," "Lovertits" and "Shake Yer Dix" all get their moments) -- and stringing them together with an eruption of lighting schemes, playfully erotic moments and vulgar rants that create the perception of the singer's persona come to explosive life. Following its Toronto International Film Festival premiere, Indiewire contributor Boyd Van Hoeij described "Peaches Does Herself" as "a 'Pina' for the queer and sexually liberated crowd." And Indiewire's Peter.
- 10/19/2013
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Editor’s Note: This review originally ran as part of our coverage of Sfiff, and we repost it now as the film opens today at the Quad Cinemas with a national rollout to follow. It seems like the appetite for widely-loved trans/glam/camp musical/rock operas can take a new one about once every two decades. Rocky Horror Picture Show was released in the late ‘70s, and Hedwig and the Angry Inch at the end of the 90s (even if it wasn’t made into a film until 2001). With Peaches Does Herself, electroclash musician and performance artist Peaches is gunning for an early next spot. The career retrospective/genesis story of the “electro-artist persona Peaches,” Peaches Does Herself is told with the help of trans porn star Danni Daniels, veteran stripper Sandy Kane, and the Fatherfucker dance troupe. It’s a high-energy, transgressive, genial revue with barely a word of dialogue. As...
- 10/18/2013
- by Mark James
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
Produced and directed by the electroclash icon of the title, Peaches Does Herself begins with an academic (Armin Dallapiccola) giving a dry lecture on Peaches. Though in unsubtitled German, it feels like a dare to intellectualize what comes next: an 80-minute performance piece that roughly tracks Peaches's career, from recording in her bedroom to full-fledged rock stardom. While it helps to already be a fan, it's imaginative and energetic enough to be entertaining for the uninitiated. Peaches has always reveled in dismantling gender, and forthright sexuality is her trademark, so Peaches Does Herself boils over in the third act when she falls in lust with transgender porn star Danii Daniels, in all her naked, 6-foot-2-inch glory—this, after Peaches, in an ons...
- 10/16/2013
- Village Voice
Peaches no longer lives in Toronto, but that doesn't mean she's not concerned that her beloved city is being run by an alleged crack-smoking mayor.
During a recent visit home for a screening of her quasi-autobiographical transsexual musical "Peaches Does Herself" at the Lgbt Film Festival, she teamed up with electro duo #entertainment to record a send-off for the city's embattled mayor titled "Bored of Rob Ford."
Ford has made international headlines — and fodder for Jon Stewart, Jay Leno and Jimmy Kimmel — after journalists from Gawker and the Toronto Star reported being shown an iPhone video of him appearing to smoke crack. Rob Ford has responded to the allegations by saying "I don't use crack cocaine nor am I an addict of crack cocaine."
"It couldn't be avoided," Peaches told Huffington Post Canada of how she first heard about Ford's crack video scandal. “It was world news and then I...
During a recent visit home for a screening of her quasi-autobiographical transsexual musical "Peaches Does Herself" at the Lgbt Film Festival, she teamed up with electro duo #entertainment to record a send-off for the city's embattled mayor titled "Bored of Rob Ford."
Ford has made international headlines — and fodder for Jon Stewart, Jay Leno and Jimmy Kimmel — after journalists from Gawker and the Toronto Star reported being shown an iPhone video of him appearing to smoke crack. Rob Ford has responded to the allegations by saying "I don't use crack cocaine nor am I an addict of crack cocaine."
"It couldn't be avoided," Peaches told Huffington Post Canada of how she first heard about Ford's crack video scandal. “It was world news and then I...
- 6/24/2013
- by HuffPost Canada Music
- Huffington Post
In a few weeks the fifth annual BAMcinemaFest at the Brooklyn Academy of Music kicks off, bringing a wide array of stellar content to New York’s hippest borough. Today, the full line-up has been revealed for the festival, which runs from June 19th to the 28th, which includes the New York premiere of the documentary “Peaches Does Herself” about punky synth pop star Peaches (complete with a live performance by the star) and the New York premiere of “I Used to Be Darker,” the new film by Matthew Porterfield. Get your subway tickets ready: it’s going to be a good one.On Tuesday, June 25th, “Peaches Does Herself” will have its New York premiere. Anyone familiar with the aggressively avant garde pop rocker will undoubtedly want to show up (she’s kind of the best) and the documentary promises a campaign of shock and awe, complete with “cameos...
- 5/24/2013
- by Drew Taylor
- The Playlist
The Kings of Summer empathises with two high school kids, Joe (Nick Robinson) and Patrick (Gabriel Basso), who trade their exasperated suburban living for an unconventional residency deep in the forest. With the assistance of affable yet creepy tag-along Biaggio (Moises Arias), the boys transform scraps of wood into an implausibly well-structured new home for fostering their abrupt adult life. As you’d expect, harsh lessons are soon learned.
Jordan Vogt-Roberts’ debut feature doesn’t establish anything especially new or bold as far as coming-of-age tales are concerned. Its thematic arc is well-trodden, concluding on general sentiments of self-sacrifice and the inherent worth of family and friendship, however fractured.
As a tale of misunderstood children escaping from their parents, Kings smacks of Moonrise Kingdom, except without any of the flavoursome aesthetic that lent that film its warmth. The odd glimpse of a liberating nature is savoured here in brief, slow motion breezes,...
Jordan Vogt-Roberts’ debut feature doesn’t establish anything especially new or bold as far as coming-of-age tales are concerned. Its thematic arc is well-trodden, concluding on general sentiments of self-sacrifice and the inherent worth of family and friendship, however fractured.
As a tale of misunderstood children escaping from their parents, Kings smacks of Moonrise Kingdom, except without any of the flavoursome aesthetic that lent that film its warmth. The odd glimpse of a liberating nature is savoured here in brief, slow motion breezes,...
- 4/23/2013
- by Ed Doyle
- SoundOnSight
Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars
Viewers will be forgiven for assuming that Berlin-based electronic musician Peaches’ concert film Peaches Does Herself is more than a little self-indulgent; after all, who could watch the first ten minutes, in which she sings songs exalting herself above all others, without thinking that? Fans of the performer’s outlandish stage antics – namely her playful sexual escapades – will find themselves right at home here, though others are likely to struggle with her overbearing shtick.
There’s little point denying the catchy appeal of Peaches’ music – one number conducted by light-powered synthesisers is simply magnificent – though the self-conscious flamboyance of the whole endeavour runs woefully low on steam long before the 80-minute run-time winds to a close. So keen is Peaches to provoke that in smacking so clearly of desperation, the opposite feeling is the result.
As Peaches walks around on stage with a prosthetic penis attached...
Viewers will be forgiven for assuming that Berlin-based electronic musician Peaches’ concert film Peaches Does Herself is more than a little self-indulgent; after all, who could watch the first ten minutes, in which she sings songs exalting herself above all others, without thinking that? Fans of the performer’s outlandish stage antics – namely her playful sexual escapades – will find themselves right at home here, though others are likely to struggle with her overbearing shtick.
There’s little point denying the catchy appeal of Peaches’ music – one number conducted by light-powered synthesisers is simply magnificent – though the self-conscious flamboyance of the whole endeavour runs woefully low on steam long before the 80-minute run-time winds to a close. So keen is Peaches to provoke that in smacking so clearly of desperation, the opposite feeling is the result.
As Peaches walks around on stage with a prosthetic penis attached...
- 4/22/2013
- by Shaun Munro
- Obsessed with Film
For four days beginning Thursday 25 April, the London o2 in Greenwich hosts Robert Redford’s 2013 Sundance London Film and Music Festival, a celebration of independent cinema both home-grown and stateside, flavoured with live music performances, panel discussions, and Q&A sessions with filmmakers.
This year’s selection includes some familiar faces: Jeff Nichols’ 2012 Cannes competitor Mud resurfaces ahead of its UK release next month, while Sundance regular Lynn Shelton returns with Touchy Feely, about a massage therapist afflicted with a sudden aversion to bodily contact. Bonds of all kinds are an overarching theme of the main programme, broken in divorce (A.C.O.D.) strengthened in friendship (The Kings of Summer and The Inevitable Defeat of Mister and Pete) and unearthed in the unlikeliest of places (Emmanuel and the Truth About Fishes).
If familial bonds recur frequently throughout the selection, there’s none more unconventional than that between smut baron...
This year’s selection includes some familiar faces: Jeff Nichols’ 2012 Cannes competitor Mud resurfaces ahead of its UK release next month, while Sundance regular Lynn Shelton returns with Touchy Feely, about a massage therapist afflicted with a sudden aversion to bodily contact. Bonds of all kinds are an overarching theme of the main programme, broken in divorce (A.C.O.D.) strengthened in friendship (The Kings of Summer and The Inevitable Defeat of Mister and Pete) and unearthed in the unlikeliest of places (Emmanuel and the Truth About Fishes).
If familial bonds recur frequently throughout the selection, there’s none more unconventional than that between smut baron...
- 4/21/2013
- by Ed Doyle
- SoundOnSight
Tags: PeachesPeaches Does HerselfIMDbMusic Interviewsmovie interviewsmoviesmusicmusic news
I see you sitting, stuffing your face, why don't you stuff me up? Eat a cookie, a big dick, everyday, what? Eat a cookie, a big clit, everyday, what?
Cruising from corporate owned radio station to radio station, you probably won’t chance upon these lyrics. From musician Peaches’ song “Stuff Me Up,” they celebrate aggressive female sexuality in a way still foreign to mainstream radio. And that’s just fine with Peaches. A focused, ever-evolving performer she’s done everything from rap with Christina Aguilera to play the titular role in Jesus Christ Superstar. She spoke with AfterEllen.com about Lady Gaga, gender ambiguity and her new transexual rock opera documentary Peaches Does Herself.
AfterEllen.com: How does using a stage name effect your work?
Peaches: Well, for me, I think I chose a name people enjoy saying. It's catchy and sounds cool.
I see you sitting, stuffing your face, why don't you stuff me up? Eat a cookie, a big dick, everyday, what? Eat a cookie, a big clit, everyday, what?
Cruising from corporate owned radio station to radio station, you probably won’t chance upon these lyrics. From musician Peaches’ song “Stuff Me Up,” they celebrate aggressive female sexuality in a way still foreign to mainstream radio. And that’s just fine with Peaches. A focused, ever-evolving performer she’s done everything from rap with Christina Aguilera to play the titular role in Jesus Christ Superstar. She spoke with AfterEllen.com about Lady Gaga, gender ambiguity and her new transexual rock opera documentary Peaches Does Herself.
AfterEllen.com: How does using a stage name effect your work?
Peaches: Well, for me, I think I chose a name people enjoy saying. It's catchy and sounds cool.
- 4/9/2013
- by Sarah Terez Rosenblum
- AfterEllen.com
One movie featuring explict gay sex is to serve as "consolation" for the banning of another such movie at a film festival in Australia (pictured above: Brenden Gregory and Jesse Metzger in Travis Mathews' romantic / psychological drama I Want Your Love) Travis Mathews and James Franco's explicit Interior. Leather Bar, about how "straight" and "gay" actors react while filming the recreation of footage supposedly cut from William Friedkin's much criticized 1980 crime thriller Cruising, will be screened as a sort of "consolation movie" for Mathews' own explicit effort I Want Your Love, the tale of two gay male friends who opt to make their friendship into something more physical. Scheduled for a presentation at the 2013 Melbourne Queer Film Festival, Mathews' movie was banned by Australia's Classification Board. Here's a great quote: David Cronenberg, the director of dozens of movies such as Videodrome, Dead Ringers, Naked Lunch, A Dangerous Method,...
- 3/16/2013
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
The Sundance Institute and London’s O2 venue announced this week the programme of panels, feature films and short films for the second Sundance London film and music festival which is schduled to run from the 25-28 April. The Sundance Institute, which annually presents the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, U.S.A., selected the film and panel programming, bringing its unique blend of indepedeant cinema and music to the heart of London. The programme continues its 2012 focus on presenting new work by independent filmmakers and exploring the interplay between independent film and music.
The programme announced today includes 18 feature films and nine short films across four sections, including a new UK Spotlight. Twenty-three films will make their international, European or UK premieres at Sundance London. Ten are by female filmmakers and six are by first-time feature filmmakers. The films collectively received 12 awards when they premiered at the...
The programme announced today includes 18 feature films and nine short films across four sections, including a new UK Spotlight. Twenty-three films will make their international, European or UK premieres at Sundance London. Ten are by female filmmakers and six are by first-time feature filmmakers. The films collectively received 12 awards when they premiered at the...
- 3/15/2013
- by John
- SoundOnSight
The lineup for the second annual Sundance London Film and Music Festival was released yesterday, full details of the features playing can be found here.
The festival Directors have outdone themselves this year, building on the success of the inaugural event in 2012. There are a number of UK and International premieres as well as a chorus of new voices and the ethos of the Park City festival has traveled very well across the pond.
On the occasion of the lineup being revealed we took some time out with John Cooper, Director of the Sundance Film Festival and Trevor Groth, Director of Programming for the Sundance Film Festival to get a feel for their thinking when they compiled the festival programme as well as their take on the independent cinema scene in the UK and the Us.
Our interview with John and Trevor is below, the responses are marked with the...
The festival Directors have outdone themselves this year, building on the success of the inaugural event in 2012. There are a number of UK and International premieres as well as a chorus of new voices and the ethos of the Park City festival has traveled very well across the pond.
On the occasion of the lineup being revealed we took some time out with John Cooper, Director of the Sundance Film Festival and Trevor Groth, Director of Programming for the Sundance Film Festival to get a feel for their thinking when they compiled the festival programme as well as their take on the independent cinema scene in the UK and the Us.
Our interview with John and Trevor is below, the responses are marked with the...
- 3/12/2013
- by Jon Lyus
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Music and comedy standout themes in UK edition of Robert Redford's independent film festival, now in its second year
An appearance by the Eagles to mark a new documentary about the iconic 70s rockers, a live show from singer and performance artist Peaches to celebrate her new film, and a Jimmy Carr-hosted panel to discuss the standup comedy-themed drama Sleepwalk With Me are among the highlights of this year's Sundance London, which returns to the O2 arena next month.
In its second year, the UK edition of the festival, which culls the best selection of movies from Robert Redford's annual celebration of American independent film-making, once again has a musical flavour. Grammy award-winning composer David Arnold will present a panel titled The Art of the Score, detailing his work on Bond films such as Casino Royale, while documentary Muscle Shoals, about the world-famous Alabama studio, has a UK premiere.
An appearance by the Eagles to mark a new documentary about the iconic 70s rockers, a live show from singer and performance artist Peaches to celebrate her new film, and a Jimmy Carr-hosted panel to discuss the standup comedy-themed drama Sleepwalk With Me are among the highlights of this year's Sundance London, which returns to the O2 arena next month.
In its second year, the UK edition of the festival, which culls the best selection of movies from Robert Redford's annual celebration of American independent film-making, once again has a musical flavour. Grammy award-winning composer David Arnold will present a panel titled The Art of the Score, detailing his work on Bond films such as Casino Royale, while documentary Muscle Shoals, about the world-famous Alabama studio, has a UK premiere.
- 3/11/2013
- by Ben Child
- The Guardian - Film News
At the end of April Sundance London returns to the O2 for another festival celebrating the best of independent film and music.
There is the same diverse range of films which made up the inaugural festival last year with a number of UK premieres including Lynn Shelton’s Touchy Feely, Shane Carruth’s Upstream Color and our first look at Steve Coogan in Film4′s The Look of Love.
The festival runs from the 25th to the 28th of April at London’s O2. We’ll be taking a more in depth look at the lineup up later in the week and this afternoon we have an exclusive interview with the festival directors.
Here’s the full line up of films, all the rest of the festival’s content (shorts, music and special events) can be found here at http://www.sundance-london.com which is also where you can buy tickets.
There is the same diverse range of films which made up the inaugural festival last year with a number of UK premieres including Lynn Shelton’s Touchy Feely, Shane Carruth’s Upstream Color and our first look at Steve Coogan in Film4′s The Look of Love.
The festival runs from the 25th to the 28th of April at London’s O2. We’ll be taking a more in depth look at the lineup up later in the week and this afternoon we have an exclusive interview with the festival directors.
Here’s the full line up of films, all the rest of the festival’s content (shorts, music and special events) can be found here at http://www.sundance-london.com which is also where you can buy tickets.
- 3/11/2013
- by Jon Lyus
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Tags: Afternoon DelightPeachesMary-Louise ParkerTina FeyRoberta GrossmanSophie SartainIMDbTilda SwintonChyler Leigh
Good afternoon and happy hump day!
Happy birthday to Kate Mara, Debra Monk and Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas!
The fabulous and angular Tilda Swinton is the new face of Chanel. Good choice, Chanel!
Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images
Dr. Lexie Grey is back! Well, what I really mean is actress Chyler Leigh will be returning to the small screen for the NBC comedy pilot Holding Patterns. The series will follow “a group of friends whose lives are altered after surviving a plane crash.” And no, I’m not kidding. Leigh has been cast as “Leah, the irresponsible, absent-minded, perpetually late slacker. Her life’s a mess and she lacks direction, but she’s not a loser; she’s intelligent, funny, and genuinely values her friends, even when sarcastically mocking them.”
On Sunday, March 10 the Indigo Girls will be performing during...
Good afternoon and happy hump day!
Happy birthday to Kate Mara, Debra Monk and Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas!
The fabulous and angular Tilda Swinton is the new face of Chanel. Good choice, Chanel!
Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images
Dr. Lexie Grey is back! Well, what I really mean is actress Chyler Leigh will be returning to the small screen for the NBC comedy pilot Holding Patterns. The series will follow “a group of friends whose lives are altered after surviving a plane crash.” And no, I’m not kidding. Leigh has been cast as “Leah, the irresponsible, absent-minded, perpetually late slacker. Her life’s a mess and she lacks direction, but she’s not a loser; she’s intelligent, funny, and genuinely values her friends, even when sarcastically mocking them.”
On Sunday, March 10 the Indigo Girls will be performing during...
- 2/27/2013
- by Bridget McManus
- AfterEllen.com
London – Electro-pop provocateur, Peaches is the first musician booked for the second Sundance London film and music festival, organized by the Sundance Institute and staged in partnership with the O2 venue in the British capital. A musician, DJ, producer -- and now, filmmaker -- Peaches will perform at indigO2 in the O2 on April 26. Sundance London will also play host to the U.K. premiere of Peach's directorial debut, Peaches Does Herself. The indie star's debut album The Teaches of Peaches came out in 2000 and her three LPs since -- Fatherfucker (2003), Impeach my Bush (2006) and I Feel Cream (2009) -- have each edgily explored
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- 2/27/2013
- by Stuart Kemp
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Montreal’s Festival Du Nouveau Cinema (10.10 – 10.21) announced their line-up today for their 41st edition and among the smorgasbord of subtitle offerings dating back to this year’s Rotterdam, Berlin, Cannes, Locarno, Venice and Tiff editions, we’re knee-deep in avant-garde world cinema from the established auteurs Assayas, Vinterberg, Ozon, Sang-Soo, Joao Pedro Rodriguez, Larrain, Loach, Reygadas, Ghobadi, Mungiu and Miguel Gomes. Heavy on offerings from Quebec and France, the fest also manages to offer a stellar snapshot of the up-and-comers from all corners of the globe. Among the notable titles in the (Competition category) International Selection we’ve got Pablo Berger’s Blancanieves, Ursula Meier’s Sister, Brian M. Cassidy and Melanie Shatzky’s Francine (which received its theatrical release earlier this month) and Rodrigo Plá’s La Demora. Loaded in Cannes items, the Special Presentations is the fest’s A-list selections (see filmmakers named above) and the one pic...
- 9/25/2012
- by Eric Lavallee
- IONCINEMA.com
This year’s Toronto was competing in my psyche with the recent loss of my mother. My focus was less on finding the greatest of films this year. I hear from others that the festival offered a good mix, if not the most outstanding, selection of films. Personally, I am discovering that a new community has opened its arms to me and the films that are standing out most for me are by women and about women. My community, those women who have lost their mothers, is sharing a unique and profound rite of passage whose meaning continuously unfolds.
In Toronto I was hyper aware of the women and their position in this corner of the world I inhabit. Canadian women, Helga Stephenson, Director Emerita of the Toronto Film Festival, predecessor to Piers Handling; Michele Maheux, Executive Director and COO of Tiff ever since I've known her which has been a long time; Linda Beath who headed United Artists when I was beginning my career and who has since moved to Europe where she teaches at Eave (European Audio Visual Entrepreneurs), Kay Armitrage, programmer of the festival for 24 years and professor at University of Toronto, are all women to helped me envisage myself as a professional in the film business, and they are still as vibrant and active as when we met more than 25 years ago. Carolle Brabant, Telefilm Canada’s Executive Director continues Canada’s female lineage as does Karen Thorne-Stone, the President and CEO of Ontario Media Development Corporation.
18 films currently are in a large part attributable to Omdc; they include Nisha Pahuja’s doc The World Before Her (contact Cinetic) (Best Doc Feature of 2012 Tribeca Ff), Sarah Polley’s Take This Waltz (Isa: TF1), Deepa Mehta’s Midnight’s Children (Isa: FilmNation), Anita Doron’s The Lesser Blessed, (Isa: EOne) Ruba Nadda’s Inescapable (Isa: Myriad), Alison Rose’s doc, Following the Wise Men.
Tiff’s new program for year-round support of mid-level Canadian filmmakers, Studio, under the directorship of Hayet Benkara is bringing industry mentorship to 16 filmmakers with experience, shorts in the festival circuit, features in development. Exactly half of these filmmakers are women. This was a conscious move on Hayet’s part. She said there is always such a predominance of males without thinking about it that she decided to bring balance.
Then a look at some more of the Canadian talent here brings me to the Birks Diamonds celebration of seven Canadian women: Anais Barbeau-Lavalette, Manon Briand, Anita Doron, Deepa Mehta (Midnight’s Children), Kate Melville, and Ruba Nadda which honored each with a Birks diamond pendant in a reception hosted by Shangri-La Hotel and Telefilm Canada where 300 guests mingled and caught up with each other. The pre-eminence of women was again made so apparent to me.
Talking to publicist Jim Dobson at Indie PR at the reception of Jordanian filmmaker Annemarie Jacir whose film When I Saw You was so evocative of the 60s, a time of worldwide freedom and even optimism among the fedayeem in Jordan looking to resist the Expulsion of the Palestinians from Palestine; he said that all five of his clients here are women directors, “I had When I Saw You, (Isa: The Match Factory), Satellite Boy (Isa: Celluloid Dreams/ Nightmare), Hannah Arendt (The Match Factory), Inch'allah (Isa: eOne), English Vinglish (Isa: Eros Int')."
Of the 289 features here at Tiff, Melissa Silverstein at Women and Hollywood is trying to zero in on the women directors, so watch her blogs More Women-Directed Films Nab Deals out of Tiff, Tiff Preview: Women Directors to Watch and Tiff Preview: The Female Directing Masters Playing at the 2012 Toronto Film Festival.
Add to this the upcoming Sundance initiative on women directors that Keri Putnam is heading up (more on that later!) and I am feeling heartened by the consciousness of women, directors and otherwise, out there. That is saying a lot since last season in Cannes with the pathetic number of women directors showing up in the festival and sidebars this past spring.
Here is the Female Factor for Tiff 12 which scores an A in my book:
Gala Presentations - 6 out of 20 = c. 30% which is way above the usual 13% which has been the average up until Cannes upended that with its paltry 2%..2 of these were opening night films.
Mira Nair The Reluctant Fundamentalist - Also showed in Venice. Isa: K5. Picked up for U.S. and Canada by IFC. Shola Lynch Free Angela & All Political Prisoners. Isa: Elle Driver Deepa Mehta Midnight’s Children. Isa: FilmNation already sold to Roadshow for Australia/ N.Z., Unikorea for So. Korea, DeaPlaneta for Spain. Ruba Nadda Inescapable. Isa: Myriad. Canada: Alliance. Liz Garbus Love, Marilyn. Isa: StudioCanal. HBO picked up No. American TV rights. Madman has Australia. Gauri Shinde English Vinglish. Isa: Eros International.
Masters – 0 – Could we say that women directors have not been around that long or shown such longevity as the men? Lina Wertmiller was a long time ago. I don’t even know if she is still alive. Ida Lupino was an anomaly. Who else was there in those early days? Alice Guy-Blaché ?
Special Presentations - 13 out of 70 = 19%
Everybody Has A Plan - Argentina/ Germany/ Spain - Ana Piterbarg - Isa: Twentieth Century Fox International - U.S.: Ld Entertainment, U.K.: Metrodome Lines Of Wellington - Also in Venice, San Sebastian Ff - Portugal - Valeria Sarmiento - Isa: Alfama Films. Germany: Ksm Cloud Atlas--Germany - Lana Wachowski, Tom Tykwer, Andy Wachowski - Isa: Focus Int'l. - U.S. and Canada: Warner Bros. , Brazil - Imagem, Finland - Future Film, Eastern Europe - Eeap, Germany X Verleih, Greece - Odeon, Iceland - Sensa, India - PVR, So. Korea - Bloomage, Benelux - Benelux Film Distributors, Inspire, Slovenia - Cenemania, Sweden - Noble, Switzerland - Ascot Elite, Taiwan - Long Shong, Turkey - Chantier Inch'allah – Canada - Anaïs Barbeau-Lavalette - Isa and Canada: Entertainment One Films Hannah Arendt – Germany – Margarethe von Trotta – Isa: The Match Factory Imogine – U.S. – Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini - Isa: Voltage. U.S.: Lionsgate/ Roadside Attractions acquired from UTA, Netherlands: Independent Ginger and Rosa – U.K. – Sally Potter – Isa: The Match Factory. U.S. contact Cinetic Love is All You Need – Also played in Venice) Denmark – Susanne Bier – Isa: TrustNordisk - U.S. : Sony Pictures Classics, Canada: Mongrel, Australia - Madman, Brazil - Art Films, Bulgaria - Pro Films, Colombia - Babilla Cine, Czech Republic - Aerofilms, Finland - Matila Rohr Nordisk, Germany - Prokino, Hungary - Cirko, Italy - Teodora, Japan - Longride, Poland - Gutek, Portugal - Pepperview Lore – Australia/ Germany/ U.K. – Cate Shortland – Isa: Memento. U.S.: Music Box, France: Memento, Germany - Piffl, Hong Hong - Encore Inlight, So. Korea - Line Tree, Benelux - ABC/ Cinemien, U.K., Artificial Eye Dreams for Sale – Japan – Miwa Nishkawa – Isa: Asmik Ace Stories We Tell – Canada – Sarah Polley - Isa: Nfb. U.K.: Artificial Eye Liverpool – Canada – Marion Briand - Isa: Max Films. Canada: Remstar Venus and Serena – U.S./ U.K. – Michelle Major, Maikin Baird. Producer's Rep: Cinetic
Mavericks - 3 out of 7 “Conversations With” were with women (43%)
Discovery 11 out of 27 = 40% which includes The-Hottest-Public Ticket for the Israeli Film directly below (a Major Buzz Film Among its Public)
Fill the Void by Rama Burshtein, a first-time-ever Hasidic woman director Kate Melville’s Picture Day Alice Winocour Augustine - Isa: Kinology 7 Cajas by Tana Schembori from Paraguay - Isa: Shoreline Gabriela Pichler’s Eat Sleep Die from Sweden, Serbia and Croatia - Isa: Yellow Affair Oy Rola Nashef’s Detroit Unleaded France’s Sylive Michel’s Our Little Differences Contact producer Pallas Film Russian censored film Clip from Serbia by Maja Milos - Isa: Wide sold to Kmbo for France, Maywin for Sweden, Artspoitation for U.S. Satellite Boy by Australian Catriona McKenzie - Isa: Celluloid Dreams/ Nightmares Ramaa Mosley’s The Brass Teapot - Isa: TF1 sold to Magnolia for U.S., Intercontinental for Hong Kong, Cien for Mexico, Vendetta for New Zealand Veteran Korean-American Grace Lee’s Janeane from Des Moines.
Tiff Docs 7 out of 29 = 24% - Women traditionally have directed a greater portion of docs
Christine Cynn (codirector ) The Act of Killing - Isa: Cinephil Janet Tobias No Place on Earth - Isa: Global Screen Sarah Burns (codirector) The Central Park Five Isa: PBS sold to Sundance Select for U.S. Treva Wurmfeld Shepard & Dark - Contact Tangerine Entertainment Nina Davenport First Comes Love - Contact producer Marina Zenovich Roman Polanski: Odd Man Out - Isa: Films Distribution Halla Alabdalla As If We Were Catching a Cobra (Comme si nous attraptions un cobra) about the art of caricature in Egypt and Syria! Halla is Syrian herself, studied science and sociology in Syria and Paris - Isa: Wide
Contemporary World Cinema 11 out of 61 = 18%
Children of Sarajevo by Aida Begic, Sarajevo - Isa: Pyramide Baby Blues by Katarzyna Rostaniec, Poland. Contact producer The Cowards Who Looked to the Sky by Yuki Tanada, Japan - Isa: Toei Comrade Kim Goes Flying by Anja Daelemans (co-director), Belgium/ No. Korea. The first western financed film out of No. Korea Three Worlds by Catherine Corsini, France - Isa: Pyramide sold to Lumiere for Benelux, Pathe for Switzerland Middle of Nowhere by Ava DuVernay, U.S. - Contact Paradigm Talent Agency The Lesser Blessed by Anita Doron, Canada - Isa: eOne Watchtower by Pelin Esmer, Turkey/ France/ Germany- Isa: Visit Films Jackie by Antoinette Beumer, Netherlands - Isa: Media Luna When I Saw You by Annemarie Jacir, Palestine,/ Jordan/ Greece All that Matters is Past by Sara Johnsen, Norway- Isa: TrustNordisk
Tiff Kids 0 out of 5. Any meaning to this???
City To City – Mumbai 0 Out Of 10 Any meaning to this???
Vanguard 2 out of 15 = 13% (the average for most festivals)
90 Minutes– Norway – Eva Sorhaug - Isa: Level K Peaches Does Herself – Germany - Peaches. Contact producer. See Indiewire review.
Midnight Madness 0 out of 9 which is fine with me, thank you. This is a boy's genre or a date-night genre for girls and boys with a plan for the night.
In Toronto I was hyper aware of the women and their position in this corner of the world I inhabit. Canadian women, Helga Stephenson, Director Emerita of the Toronto Film Festival, predecessor to Piers Handling; Michele Maheux, Executive Director and COO of Tiff ever since I've known her which has been a long time; Linda Beath who headed United Artists when I was beginning my career and who has since moved to Europe where she teaches at Eave (European Audio Visual Entrepreneurs), Kay Armitrage, programmer of the festival for 24 years and professor at University of Toronto, are all women to helped me envisage myself as a professional in the film business, and they are still as vibrant and active as when we met more than 25 years ago. Carolle Brabant, Telefilm Canada’s Executive Director continues Canada’s female lineage as does Karen Thorne-Stone, the President and CEO of Ontario Media Development Corporation.
18 films currently are in a large part attributable to Omdc; they include Nisha Pahuja’s doc The World Before Her (contact Cinetic) (Best Doc Feature of 2012 Tribeca Ff), Sarah Polley’s Take This Waltz (Isa: TF1), Deepa Mehta’s Midnight’s Children (Isa: FilmNation), Anita Doron’s The Lesser Blessed, (Isa: EOne) Ruba Nadda’s Inescapable (Isa: Myriad), Alison Rose’s doc, Following the Wise Men.
Tiff’s new program for year-round support of mid-level Canadian filmmakers, Studio, under the directorship of Hayet Benkara is bringing industry mentorship to 16 filmmakers with experience, shorts in the festival circuit, features in development. Exactly half of these filmmakers are women. This was a conscious move on Hayet’s part. She said there is always such a predominance of males without thinking about it that she decided to bring balance.
Then a look at some more of the Canadian talent here brings me to the Birks Diamonds celebration of seven Canadian women: Anais Barbeau-Lavalette, Manon Briand, Anita Doron, Deepa Mehta (Midnight’s Children), Kate Melville, and Ruba Nadda which honored each with a Birks diamond pendant in a reception hosted by Shangri-La Hotel and Telefilm Canada where 300 guests mingled and caught up with each other. The pre-eminence of women was again made so apparent to me.
Talking to publicist Jim Dobson at Indie PR at the reception of Jordanian filmmaker Annemarie Jacir whose film When I Saw You was so evocative of the 60s, a time of worldwide freedom and even optimism among the fedayeem in Jordan looking to resist the Expulsion of the Palestinians from Palestine; he said that all five of his clients here are women directors, “I had When I Saw You, (Isa: The Match Factory), Satellite Boy (Isa: Celluloid Dreams/ Nightmare), Hannah Arendt (The Match Factory), Inch'allah (Isa: eOne), English Vinglish (Isa: Eros Int')."
Of the 289 features here at Tiff, Melissa Silverstein at Women and Hollywood is trying to zero in on the women directors, so watch her blogs More Women-Directed Films Nab Deals out of Tiff, Tiff Preview: Women Directors to Watch and Tiff Preview: The Female Directing Masters Playing at the 2012 Toronto Film Festival.
Add to this the upcoming Sundance initiative on women directors that Keri Putnam is heading up (more on that later!) and I am feeling heartened by the consciousness of women, directors and otherwise, out there. That is saying a lot since last season in Cannes with the pathetic number of women directors showing up in the festival and sidebars this past spring.
Here is the Female Factor for Tiff 12 which scores an A in my book:
Gala Presentations - 6 out of 20 = c. 30% which is way above the usual 13% which has been the average up until Cannes upended that with its paltry 2%..2 of these were opening night films.
Mira Nair The Reluctant Fundamentalist - Also showed in Venice. Isa: K5. Picked up for U.S. and Canada by IFC. Shola Lynch Free Angela & All Political Prisoners. Isa: Elle Driver Deepa Mehta Midnight’s Children. Isa: FilmNation already sold to Roadshow for Australia/ N.Z., Unikorea for So. Korea, DeaPlaneta for Spain. Ruba Nadda Inescapable. Isa: Myriad. Canada: Alliance. Liz Garbus Love, Marilyn. Isa: StudioCanal. HBO picked up No. American TV rights. Madman has Australia. Gauri Shinde English Vinglish. Isa: Eros International.
Masters – 0 – Could we say that women directors have not been around that long or shown such longevity as the men? Lina Wertmiller was a long time ago. I don’t even know if she is still alive. Ida Lupino was an anomaly. Who else was there in those early days? Alice Guy-Blaché ?
Special Presentations - 13 out of 70 = 19%
Everybody Has A Plan - Argentina/ Germany/ Spain - Ana Piterbarg - Isa: Twentieth Century Fox International - U.S.: Ld Entertainment, U.K.: Metrodome Lines Of Wellington - Also in Venice, San Sebastian Ff - Portugal - Valeria Sarmiento - Isa: Alfama Films. Germany: Ksm Cloud Atlas--Germany - Lana Wachowski, Tom Tykwer, Andy Wachowski - Isa: Focus Int'l. - U.S. and Canada: Warner Bros. , Brazil - Imagem, Finland - Future Film, Eastern Europe - Eeap, Germany X Verleih, Greece - Odeon, Iceland - Sensa, India - PVR, So. Korea - Bloomage, Benelux - Benelux Film Distributors, Inspire, Slovenia - Cenemania, Sweden - Noble, Switzerland - Ascot Elite, Taiwan - Long Shong, Turkey - Chantier Inch'allah – Canada - Anaïs Barbeau-Lavalette - Isa and Canada: Entertainment One Films Hannah Arendt – Germany – Margarethe von Trotta – Isa: The Match Factory Imogine – U.S. – Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini - Isa: Voltage. U.S.: Lionsgate/ Roadside Attractions acquired from UTA, Netherlands: Independent Ginger and Rosa – U.K. – Sally Potter – Isa: The Match Factory. U.S. contact Cinetic Love is All You Need – Also played in Venice) Denmark – Susanne Bier – Isa: TrustNordisk - U.S. : Sony Pictures Classics, Canada: Mongrel, Australia - Madman, Brazil - Art Films, Bulgaria - Pro Films, Colombia - Babilla Cine, Czech Republic - Aerofilms, Finland - Matila Rohr Nordisk, Germany - Prokino, Hungary - Cirko, Italy - Teodora, Japan - Longride, Poland - Gutek, Portugal - Pepperview Lore – Australia/ Germany/ U.K. – Cate Shortland – Isa: Memento. U.S.: Music Box, France: Memento, Germany - Piffl, Hong Hong - Encore Inlight, So. Korea - Line Tree, Benelux - ABC/ Cinemien, U.K., Artificial Eye Dreams for Sale – Japan – Miwa Nishkawa – Isa: Asmik Ace Stories We Tell – Canada – Sarah Polley - Isa: Nfb. U.K.: Artificial Eye Liverpool – Canada – Marion Briand - Isa: Max Films. Canada: Remstar Venus and Serena – U.S./ U.K. – Michelle Major, Maikin Baird. Producer's Rep: Cinetic
Mavericks - 3 out of 7 “Conversations With” were with women (43%)
Discovery 11 out of 27 = 40% which includes The-Hottest-Public Ticket for the Israeli Film directly below (a Major Buzz Film Among its Public)
Fill the Void by Rama Burshtein, a first-time-ever Hasidic woman director Kate Melville’s Picture Day Alice Winocour Augustine - Isa: Kinology 7 Cajas by Tana Schembori from Paraguay - Isa: Shoreline Gabriela Pichler’s Eat Sleep Die from Sweden, Serbia and Croatia - Isa: Yellow Affair Oy Rola Nashef’s Detroit Unleaded France’s Sylive Michel’s Our Little Differences Contact producer Pallas Film Russian censored film Clip from Serbia by Maja Milos - Isa: Wide sold to Kmbo for France, Maywin for Sweden, Artspoitation for U.S. Satellite Boy by Australian Catriona McKenzie - Isa: Celluloid Dreams/ Nightmares Ramaa Mosley’s The Brass Teapot - Isa: TF1 sold to Magnolia for U.S., Intercontinental for Hong Kong, Cien for Mexico, Vendetta for New Zealand Veteran Korean-American Grace Lee’s Janeane from Des Moines.
Tiff Docs 7 out of 29 = 24% - Women traditionally have directed a greater portion of docs
Christine Cynn (codirector ) The Act of Killing - Isa: Cinephil Janet Tobias No Place on Earth - Isa: Global Screen Sarah Burns (codirector) The Central Park Five Isa: PBS sold to Sundance Select for U.S. Treva Wurmfeld Shepard & Dark - Contact Tangerine Entertainment Nina Davenport First Comes Love - Contact producer Marina Zenovich Roman Polanski: Odd Man Out - Isa: Films Distribution Halla Alabdalla As If We Were Catching a Cobra (Comme si nous attraptions un cobra) about the art of caricature in Egypt and Syria! Halla is Syrian herself, studied science and sociology in Syria and Paris - Isa: Wide
Contemporary World Cinema 11 out of 61 = 18%
Children of Sarajevo by Aida Begic, Sarajevo - Isa: Pyramide Baby Blues by Katarzyna Rostaniec, Poland. Contact producer The Cowards Who Looked to the Sky by Yuki Tanada, Japan - Isa: Toei Comrade Kim Goes Flying by Anja Daelemans (co-director), Belgium/ No. Korea. The first western financed film out of No. Korea Three Worlds by Catherine Corsini, France - Isa: Pyramide sold to Lumiere for Benelux, Pathe for Switzerland Middle of Nowhere by Ava DuVernay, U.S. - Contact Paradigm Talent Agency The Lesser Blessed by Anita Doron, Canada - Isa: eOne Watchtower by Pelin Esmer, Turkey/ France/ Germany- Isa: Visit Films Jackie by Antoinette Beumer, Netherlands - Isa: Media Luna When I Saw You by Annemarie Jacir, Palestine,/ Jordan/ Greece All that Matters is Past by Sara Johnsen, Norway- Isa: TrustNordisk
Tiff Kids 0 out of 5. Any meaning to this???
City To City – Mumbai 0 Out Of 10 Any meaning to this???
Vanguard 2 out of 15 = 13% (the average for most festivals)
90 Minutes– Norway – Eva Sorhaug - Isa: Level K Peaches Does Herself – Germany - Peaches. Contact producer. See Indiewire review.
Midnight Madness 0 out of 9 which is fine with me, thank you. This is a boy's genre or a date-night genre for girls and boys with a plan for the night.
- 9/21/2012
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Directed by: Peaches
Written by: Peaches
Featuring: Peaches, Dannii Daniels, Sandy Kane
There is nobody quite like Peaches. Her music plays with gender norms and is full of sexually explicit lyrics that love to push the envelope. She is practically a one-woman army, playing her own instruments for her songs, programming her own electronic beats and producing her own albums. So, the next logical step for her was to direct her first feature film.
I was fortunate to see the premiere of Peaches Does Herself at the Toronto International Film Festival this year. It was interesting to see so many of Peaches' friends, family and collaborators in the audience for such an autobiographical film. After all, Peaches is Toronto born (and actually used to be roommates with singer Feist in case you are interested). So it was quite surreal seeing Peaches bounce around onscreen clad in an outfit sporting...
Written by: Peaches
Featuring: Peaches, Dannii Daniels, Sandy Kane
There is nobody quite like Peaches. Her music plays with gender norms and is full of sexually explicit lyrics that love to push the envelope. She is practically a one-woman army, playing her own instruments for her songs, programming her own electronic beats and producing her own albums. So, the next logical step for her was to direct her first feature film.
I was fortunate to see the premiere of Peaches Does Herself at the Toronto International Film Festival this year. It was interesting to see so many of Peaches' friends, family and collaborators in the audience for such an autobiographical film. After all, Peaches is Toronto born (and actually used to be roommates with singer Feist in case you are interested). So it was quite surreal seeing Peaches bounce around onscreen clad in an outfit sporting...
- 9/20/2012
- by Kelly Michael Stewart
- Planet Fury
Toronto-born, Berlin-based electronic musician and singer Peaches plays herself in the concert film “Peaches Does Herself,” a no-holds-barred explosion of post-punk and neo-queer performance art that mixes song, music, dance, theater, costumes and nudity. Born Merrill Beth Nisker in 1966, though she doesn’t look older than 25 or thereabouts, Peaches performs songs on a Berlin stage from her various albums, including “Teaches of Peaches,” “Fatherfucker” and “Impeach My Bush,” with her radical, sexually explicit and often queer- and transgender-themed lyrics accompanied by musicians, dancers and, occasionally, elaborate theatrics. It’s a spectacle for the eye and ear as she tries to redress (or is it erase?) the world’s gender imbalance while also giving audiences some superb voice work and an impressively staged show. Think of it as a “Pina” for the queer and sexually liberated crowd; it’s not in 3D,...
- 9/14/2012
- by Boyd van Hoeij
- Indiewire
9:00 pm - Before round two of avant-garde shorts as my nightcap, I hit up two Wavelengths features, differently, Molussia and The Lebanese Rocket Society. The former is by Nicolas Rey (not a typo, also the other guy’s dead), and is a rigorous, shag carpet confrontation of tyranny, technique, and machines. For one thing, it is at least noteworthy for its bold formalist stroke that ensures that every audience will have a unique experience with it: comprised of nine 16mm reels, the order in which the reels are projected is randomly chosen by the projectionist using a kind of lottery system. As if to underline the non-narrativity of it, that the film could still work in the 362,000+ possible configurations is an indication of what you’re in for (a few in the audience at my Ago Jackman Hall screening were clearly frustrated, perhaps even provoked by the 9 different title...
- 9/8/2012
- by IONCINEMA.com Contributing Writers
- IONCINEMA.com
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